Spitting up blood.

[happy12345]

I have been on warfarin for over 3 years due to PE'S after which i spitted up some blood, this still happens now. I have seen GP and been to hospital and they say my inr is in range so not to worry. This does worry me as i feel i could have clotted again. Does this happen to anyone else on warfarin.

[Jane-Martin]

Of course it must worry you. It is not normal to be spitting up blood wether on warfarin or not and you should be seen by a specialist who can identify the cause, demand your doctor refers you. What was the cause of the clotting? Did they check for blood clotting disorders?

[overnighthearingloss]

In my experience there is always a time lag factor with warfarin.

My inr range is 2.0 - 3.0 but recently went up to 4.5

That is VERY high for me.I was also coughing a bit of blood. It was also in nasal discharges. Not huge amounts and I had attempted to explain it away by other factors. I felt really unwell in general. Extremely tired and foggy. I thought maybe I had a cold or infection. But a couple of days later the test indicated that it could have been warfain related.

After they adjusted my warfarin downwards the mysterious blood sightings seemed to disappear.

Eat some broccoli or cabbage and see if that brings any improvement.

[Amoobaa]

Yes, like the others say- demand further investigation. Coughing up blood or finding it in your spit does present the possibility of over-anticoagulation. Its completely understandable that you would be concerned about it. What was your INR when they checked it? My Father's INR went from 3.0 to over 10.0 in the space of a couple of days and they had to give him pure vitamin K drops to reverse all the effects of the warfarin. He was transferred to clexane jabs (twice a day) instead and it was around that time he coughed up some blood. We were told to come to the hospital if he coughed up more blood. The problem is, everyone is so different, each case is unique. I suppose the best thing would be for you to get seen by a specialist who can answer all your questions. Good luck

[fedup33]

Could this be from bleeding gums? I'm in warfarin and a couple of times I've woke up tasting blood in my mouth and spat it out panicking that it was something terrible until I noticed a wee bit of gum was bleeding near the back of my mouth!

[happy12345]

Thanks for your replies, No cause was found for my PE,S idiopathic, just told to stay on warfarin for life. Had some blood tests which showed no disorders with blood but told they only no the tip of the iceburg of blood disorders so best to stay on warfarin. I do self test and when this happens my inr has been in range. The hospital just said don't worry and only come back if i start spitting up a lot of blood. Touch wood its not alot, i get the taste of blood in my mouth then when i spitt out you can see it is blood. I have been to dentist, teeth and gums fine and when it happens i can find no blood coming from my gums. I will keep my eye on it, but as i have been having this problem for 3 years no one seems to worry.

[InSpain in reply to happy12345]

Have you been tested for Haemostasis? I had very similar symptoms INR ok etc. After an on the ball Doctor did further testing they found I had something called Hypoprothrombinemia caused by Hemostasis, and as a result they found that I had a very swollen spleen and mild internal bleeding and acute Hemarthrosis (bleeding in the joints). They need to test your level of platelets and levels of plasma to see if they are withing range. Mine weren't which led to vasculitis of the heart and lungs, hence the spitting up of blood. Ask if they've tested you for this because I know it's not a run of the mill test and certainly needs to be ruled out. Good luck and I hope you get some answers very soon. Best wishes from here InSpain xxx

[Yakity_Yak]

Yep, been on warfarin 2 yrs and every time I wake up, I'm spitting blood. Was alarmed at first, but after several visits to the doc and scans and such - INR is in range... so, I just have to get used to the taste of blood.

Oh how I miss orange juice.